Fatherly Love
by Wandex System
Summary: Cao Pi is jealous of his younger brother and is planning to run away from home with the help of Sima Yi, who is also offended by the Weions' misunderstanding. But will they manage to live on their own?..
1. Chapter 1

Fatherly Love

Chapter 1

Dinner-time Story

Cao Cao sat down and took the spoon in his hand.

"Daddy,you promised to tell us four tales today!"Cao Pi reminded,"It's hard to tell four at the same time..."

"No it's not!"Cao Zhi interrupted,"I can tell four tales at a time!"he smiled proudly.

Cao Cao looked at his younger son with love in his eyes.

"How clever my child is!"he thought.

Cao Pi glared at Cao Zhi,making the younger brother look into his bowl of soup with astonishing interest and enthusiasm.

"...so maybe you could tell us one now?.."Pi continued.

"Uh,okay,"Cao Cao agreed,"One day everybody got completely fed up with Zhuge Liang's bao zi,for they had bao zi for breakfast,dinner,tea and supper,and Yue Ying even sold some after school. So Zuo Ci decided to get some other recipe of tasty and healthy food frome some country far,far away,because in China they all ate rice and those bao zi..."

"Ain't we in China?.."Cao Pi asked,"How about McDonalds?.. It's pretty tasty and healthy!"

Cao Zhi chuckled,for he knew what daddy would answer.

"Don't ask too many questions,son! Didn't I tell you it was long,long ago?"he sounded annoyed.

"But..."

"So he told one of his fastest storks to fly to the Roman empire and get the recipe...

When the stork returned,he brought a paper with a recipe of meat jelly.(A/N we have it in Russia,but I dunno how this is called in English,or if it existed in Rome...) Zuo Ci called Pang Tong to help him,and together they cooked some jelly and let it cool the whole night. The next day..."

Cao Cao checked if there was any more soup left in the kids's bowls.

"Huh,Zhi,what's the soup still doing in your plate?.."he frowned.

"But,daddy,what's it doing in yours?"Zhi wondered.

"In mine it's quickly disappearing,son!"Cao Cao answered with a smile,"Now two more spoonfuls of soup if you want to know what happened next!"

The ruler looked at the tasteless soup disappearing in his sons' mouths with joy filling his heart. His wives always quarrelled about things,which usually resulted in his need to feed the kids in McDonalds or in tasteless,cold soup. He caught laughing glares of his little strategist,whose mom was a great cooker,but could do nothing. After all,he knew Sima Yi didn't get a lot of food because of his seven brothers...

"Daddy!"Cao Pi remembered,"The tale!"

"Tail? What tail? Sima Yi? Has a ta..."

"DAD you were telling them a story,stop thinking about me already!"Yi yelled from around the corner,"I wanna know what happened next!"

"Then,"Cao Cao sighed,"Sit down and eat all the remaining soup..."

The hungry strategist quickly emptied the pot.

"But when Zuo Ci was sleeping,he saw a dream about the Teacher Luo Tzu. Luo Tzu said,"Zhu Bajie the pig came to me today and said that he would be very angry if my followers eat pig meat!"So Zuo Ci decided to bring the jelly to Zhang He. But Zhang He refused to eat it,for it was non-healthy. Then Zuo Ci took the food to Dong Zhuo.

"Don't you pity the poor little pink piggies? You cruel taoist!"Dong Zhuo exclaimed. "Then let us have it!"Guo Si and Li Jue begged. But Dong Zhuo yelled at them,and Zuo Ci had to take the jelly back... The food was cool and smelled nicely,and it was a pity Ci had to throw it away... But then he suddenly saw a very skinny Sima Yi approach him,and..."

Cao Cao looked at the three boys listening to him with their eyes widened and their mouths open.

"Three more spoons!"

Cao Pi made a face,"I can't eat this anymore!"

"In my honor,son!"Cao suggested,"...Sima Yi's uncle Sima Fu came to stay,and he spent all their money playing guo... So there was no more food left in their house... So Zuo Ci gave that jelly to Sima Yi,and he ate it!"

Cao Pi and Cao Zhi clapped their hands. They totally liked the story. But Cao Cao could see Sima Yi's watery eyes,"Why tell everyone about my troubles,"the strategist hissed,as he jumped up and ran away home,where his elder brother would probably make him wash the dishes for him and his numerous girlfriends...

Cao Cao rised from his seat and shook his head,biting his lips,attracting the confused glares of his two sons.

He understood he had just done something that hurt his little helper's feelings really much. He understood there were things even a man of his talent and power mustn't have done. But it was too late.

Cao Cao's red,allergic eyes peered into the window,watching the thin little figure dissapear into the darkness of the woods...


	2. Chapter 2

Fatherly Love

Chapter 2

Forget It

Cao Pi looked at the Maths homework in despair once more.

"Uh..."

When it came to Maths,the prince was a kind of awful...

He enviously looked at Zhi who had just finished the work and was now going to play football outside.

"Cao Pi,Cao Pi,will you come and play with me?"Zhi chuckled.

"Shut up you... After all,I'm two years older than you,toddler! And I get more homework!"the elder brother yelled angrily,as he threw one of his notebooks at the smaller boy.

"Okay,do your homework,old man!"Zhi stuck his tongue out,"I'll take your notebook to daddy,see what he tells you if he sees your marks! Haha!"

Cao Pi buried his face in his hands. He was doomed...

Cao Cao's elder son,the Wei prince,the heir to the throne was now sitting and trying to do his homework,driven mad by his younger brother.

Somebody knocked at the door.

Cao Pi chose not to answer.

The stubborn visitor knocked once more.

"Oh leave me alone!"Pi exclaimed as he jumped up from his seat to open the door.

"Hello..."Sima Yi greeted the prince.

"Uh,it's you,mister Strategist,"Cao Pi sighed,"Could you help me with..."

But Sima Yi was already reading his textbook.

"Aw my..."the strategist sighed,"I'm not the person to ask help from... You know what marks I have in Maths?.."

"A...A,A and once more A!"Cao Pi said with confidence.

The other boy shook his head.

"Any other guesses?"

"B..."the prince said a bit less confidently.

"No,Cao Pi!"Sima Yi sighed,"Let's face the sad truth,your force's only strategist has been beaten by Zhuge Liang once more... I have Cs only!"

Cao Pi's jaw dropped.

Sima Yi quickly moved to the next topic.

"I could try to help you though..."the boy said,"But where in Luo Yang is your copybook?"

"We are in Xu Chang,"Cao Pi answered,"My brother,he... He is a..."

"No-no-no-no-no!"Sima interrupted,"I still get what you mean!"

Cao Pi could see the thin strategist quickly disappear in the doorways.

The heir to the Wei throne sighed as he tried to understand the home assignment once more.

"Ma liege!"he heard a familiar arrogant voice behind his back,"Your copybook!"

Cao Pi didn't believe. He knew his brother was not the person to give things away easily.

"How did you do this?"

The strategist boy offered no answers but a sly grin.

"Now I offer your highness to make a break,"Yi said with a sullen expression on his pale face,"And head your priceless..."

"Oh,shut up your priceless slyness!"Cao Pi laughed,"Can't you ever talk normally?.."

Sima Yi didn't show no emotion,instead he took the heir's hand and pulled him outside and into the garden.

They were walking hand in hand through the huge plantations of roses and tulips of all tones.

"Wow..."Sima Yi said,"So many...plants!"

"Why,haven't you been to the palace garden before?"Cao Pi exclaimed,sounding a bit amazed,"And don't you know those flowers' names?"

"I...I have moved here from He Nei pretty recently and...um..."Sima Yi stuttered,"Didn't have much time."

"Are there no flowers in He Nei?"Cao Pi raised his left eyebrow and looked at his pale friend,not to say-vassal. He had no REAL friends,who wouldn't think of him as of their prince.

"There are,"the strategist whispered,"There was one flower but mum died when I was three and it withered away..."

"Aw look!"Cao Pi laughed,pointing at the two six-year-old twins with funny paper hats on their heads,"Xiu and Riu are here!"

"Huh,I wonder who sent them!"Sima Yi said,as he turned over,pretending to look for the sender somewhere in the bushes.

In fact he was trying to hide the tears. Cao Pi was rich and happy,happy and beloved. Sima Yi was one of the eight children in the family. A good and prosperous future awaited Cao Pi. He just had to stretch out his hand to get what he wanted ,while Sima Yi had to struggle for each coin or piece of bread. It was just his luck that he became a strategist of Wei. Cao Pi wasn't cruel,he was just too careless in his prosperous happiness to notice anybody else's troubles.

Sima Yi wiped out the tears along with the bad mood using his long sleeve. He was great at hiding emotions,but there surely was a person who could beat him...

"Cao Pi!"Cao Riu (or was it Cao Xiu?)said seriously,"Cao Zhi said that you must return to the palace and do your homework!"

The little boy raised his hand to be more convincing.

Cao Pi laughed.

"Riu!"he said,still laughing,"You know I'm elder than Cao Zhi,right? Now listen:I don't ever care what he thinks and shall never ever listen to what he says!"

"I'm Xiu,"the younger brother frowned,"Why,that's father's will!"

"Uh..."Cao Pi mumbled,watching the twins go away,"Stop,kids! I'm coming!"

Riu and Xiu grinned evilly. They liked making the older brother obey them.

"Hahaha!"Xiu laughed,"Stupid Cao Pi obeys preschoolers!"

Riu slapped Xiu and hissed,

"You dummy! Don't you want Cao Pi's candy? If we tease him,we'll never get it!"

"I like Cao Zhi more than Cao Pi!"Xiu yelled in anger,"He's cleverer!"

"I'm older than you!"Riu yelled,"You! Must! Obey!"

The fight was about to start when suddenly the boys felt long,ice cold fingers on their shoulders.

"Stop fighting!"Sima Yi hissed,"You better listen to what I say!"

Xiu and Riu shivered.

"I will give you candy! Lots of candy..."Sima Yi's eyes narrowed,"If you only look at what Cao Zhi does and tell me! So,what do you say?.."

"Okay!"Riu said after a short pause,"Xiu?"

"Yes..."Xiu sighed. His love to candy had just beaten his love to Cao Zhi,"I will..."

"Okay!"Sima Yi grinned in a sly and sinister way,"But make sure nobody knows,else..."

He grinned once more,revealing the braces,making the children tremble,remembering his sharp claws.

"I wish you well!"he hissed,pushing the kids away.

Twelve minutes later Cao Pi ran into the garden.

"Sima Yi!"he exclaimed,"What have you done to..."

"Shhhh!"Sima Yi whispered,"I have a plan..."

He winked.

"Cao Cao doesn't like me anymore!"Pi complained,"You know what? He thinks Cao Zhi is much better than me!"

"Uh-huh!"Yi chuckled. He knew Cao Cao adored his eldest son greatly,"Why do you th..."

Sima Yi saw Xiu and Riu making him strange signals from around the corner.

"Aw,ma liege,I gotta go!"the strategist said quickly,"Wait for me here,I'll be back!"

Cao Pi looked at his companion in astonishment.

"You always disappear...so quickly..."

But the strategist was already sitting next to him.

"You know what?"he began,"Cao Cao likes Zhi so much because he can write poems! Why don't you try?.."

"But I can't!"Cao Pi exclaimed in despair.

"Then forget about fatherly love,"Sima Yi grinned,"Right?"

He stood up and went back to the palace.

"Wait!"Cao Pi reached out with his hand,but Yi already disappeared.

"Uh,"Pi sighed,"Oh my..."


End file.
